Written question asked by Stewart Malcolm McDonald (Scottish National Party) on Thursday, 24 October 2019, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 28 October 2019. It was answered by Lord Lancaster of Kimbolton (Conservative) on Tuesday, 29 October 2019 on behalf of the Ministry of Defence.

Military Aid: Training

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will review his Department's policy on training military officers from countries with a record of human rights abuses.

Answer: All training offered to foreign military personnel is provided in accordance with an Overseas Security and Justice Assistance (OSJA) assessment, which will evaluate the risk of the training being used in a way that is not in line with human rights and British values. Participation in UK training exposes personnel from other countries to UK values and standards and helps to promote concepts of accountability, transparency and human rights protection. OSJA assessments are reviewed annually and also if there is a change of circumstances which might significantly alter the risks relating to any existing Defence training programmes.

Secondary information